Ravine
by QChronoD
Summary: Sometimes you need to lose something before you realize how important it really is.
1. Chapter 1

Sorry it's been almost forever since I've posted anything, but I lost all desire to write for a while. Decided to work on something else while my HP story festers in the back of my brain. I hope you enjoy this, it should only be a few chapters long (depends on how much it grows when I rewrite the draft)  
I'm not sure that I'm really happy with the way the fight came out, so please let me know what you think.

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Breathe, land, step, jump.  
Tense, crouch, focus, explode.  
Branch, leaves, air, tree.  
Scuff mark on that branch, freshly scattered leaves, snap of broken twig, missing piece of bark.  
Need to be faster, need to push harder, need to catch them, need to save her.  
All thats to be seen is an orange blur in the canopy of the forest.

"Stop looking behind you and watch where you're going."  
"The little bastard seems to be catching up."  
"Well why don't you go slow him back down then."  
"Fine. I'll meet you at depot 17."

Duck, roll, pivot, guard.  
They've split up. One stayed to slow you down, while the other gets away.  
There is no time, going to lose them, need to keep moving, end this quick.  
Lunge, swipe, block, retreat.  
Parry, spin, kick, flip.  
Block, punch, duck, grab.  
Pull, twist, stab, death.  
27 seconds, took to long, rip off the mask, he was from Cloud.

"I hope he managed to kill the little bastard. The border isn't that far now. Just need one more minute."

"STOP!"

"What? How did you catch up so fast? That should have taken at least 3 minutes to get here!"

"Let her go, and I won't hurt you. Your friend is dead. No reason for you to join him."

The ninja holds his captive in front of his body, with a kunai pressed tightly against her throat drawing a trail of blood. "She doesn't need to be alive, though it is preferred. Come any closer and she will die."

"I won't let you kill her. I'll just have to stop you before you can." With one hand out of view, the pursuer makes a series of seals and focuses a bit of chakra.

POOF! Three clones surround the ninja, two already thrusting a kunai, the third pulling the captive away. The ninja ducks and parries both clones and throws a shuriken at the third. Wheeling around, he stabs at thin air, right as his pursuer appears. Rolling back, he send two more kunai at his opponent but takes a blow from one of the clones. Outnumbered, he keeps retreating, drawing closer to the captive. With a final twist, he dispels the two clones and launches at the third. Ducking to avoid his pursuers weapons, he stabs through the third clone and deep into the side of the captive.

'NO!' Angry that the ninja stabbed the captive, he draws more chakra into his hand. Molding, shaping, spinning, swirling. In the blink of an eye, he vanishes and reappears with his arm thrust out into the ninjas back. He lets go of his control, and the energy lashes out, tearing and shredding anything it can reach. The ninja is blown forward into a rock, and his grip on the captives hood, pulls her along. Two feet to his left. Where there is no rock. Over the end of a deep ravine. The pursuer freezes in shock, and watches her body tumble out into the air. With the hood pulled back, he finally catches a glimpse of her face just as she disappears.

"HINATA!!!!"

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As always, this is not beta-ed. If you would like to beta, and help make my write less sucktacular, feel free to let me know.


	2. Chapter 2

Wow, another chapter already. I surprise myself sometimes.

Hope you guys enjoy. As always, unbeta'd, and probably missing half the formatting cause I stil can't figure out why it undoes stuff

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'What I wouldn't give for a bottle of sake right now. I think I'd even give up gambling for a week'  
If her assistant Shizune could hear what Tsunade was thinking, she would have called for the ANBU to take the impostor to Interrogation. Luckily for the Hokage, no one could hear what was going through her mind, doubly so since there was only one other person in the room, and Hyuuga Hiashi had been droning on for the last 20 minutes about the rules and regulations that he felt dictated the response to the situation.

"ENOUGH!" Tsunade jumped to her feet and slammed her fist down on her table, accidentally breaking it, again. "Hyuuga-san, I respect your clan for their fighting ability, I enjoy the No theater that you host for the festival, and I am grateful that you have allowed several of the younger members to begin training at the hospital. But I will NOT allow you to tell me what to do. She is one of my ninja and therefore my responsibility. We will recover your daughter, and I will go to war if that is the only way!"

Throughout the entire rant, Hiashi's face never changed. One would think that he had been replaced by a flesh colored statue. "Of course Hokage-sama, your word is law. My response was inappropriate and I was acting above my station. I will return to the compound and instruct my clan to await your orders. If there nothing else, I bid you good day." Bowing deeply from the waist, the leader of the Hyuuga calmly walked out of the office as though strolling through the park.

Knocking on the frame of the door, Shizune poked her head in to see if her master was still in a good mood. "Hokage-sama, Kiba-kun and Shino-kun are here. Shall I send them in?"

"Please do Shizune-chan. And can you also get me a bottle of sake?"

Narrowing her eyes at the Hokage, she relented after seeing the tension in her body. "Very well Hokage-sama, but only one. You two may enter now."

The two boys entered the office slowly, still recovering from their injuries. Aburame Shino entered first, primarily because he was being pushed in a wheelchair. Due to his bloodline, Shino had always lagged behind his two teammates in taijutsu and overall physical strength, a weakness that the enemy has exploited flawlessly. He was currently recuperating from a concussion, internal bleeding, a ruptured kidney, and several broken bones, including his left collarbone, three ribs, right leg and pelvis. Even with the doctors accelerating his healing with jutsu, the bones wouldn't be healed for 3 weeks, and there would be significant rehabilitation beyond that. His teammate, Inuzuka Kiba, had less extensive injuries, though they had been equally debilitating. No one would claim that Kiba was a genius, he was never known for his thinking, but everyone would admit that he had developed very advanced battle instincts. His taijutsu was near jounin level, and even higher when fighting with his partner Akamaru. Unfortunately, because the two fought with their instincts and not with their heads, they were apt to be drawn into traps and tricked into making bad decisions. This was the reason for the injuries sustained. In his rage, the enemy was able to separate he and Akamaru, reducing their fighting ability and forcing them into a defense fight. Akamaru was still at his sister's clinic recovering from the poisons and chakra exhaustion. Kiba was recovering from the same ailments, as well as a dislocated shoulder and the loss of his left pinkie. He would recover much quicker than Shino, but was beginning to doubt his actions and his abilities.

Stopping in front of the Hokage's desk, he set the brakes on Shino's wheelchair and stood to his left, unconsciously leaving enough empty space for thier missing teammate. Tsunade saw the condition of her ninja and the empty space between them and let ought a deep sign.

"Team 8 reporting on termination of mission Hokage-sama," Shino began in his quite voice. "Mission began 83 hours ago, objectives were to investigate a series of missing persons near the border of Kaminari no Kuni. Team 8 arrived in the area approximately 17 hours after leaving Konohagakure. Preliminary scouting revealed several unusual symbols carved into three trees 2.4 kilometers due east of the coal mine. Detailed sketches are included in the written report."

"That night, we set up camp between the mine and where the trees were. Me an' Akamaru set up a series of traps and warning points, Shino told his bugs to spread out, and Hinata-chan did her thing and said it was all clear. Me an' Akamaru took first watch, we woke up Shino, and he woke up Hinata for her turn. The next day, we talked to the guy who ran the mine. He said that everyone that disappeared had been traveling east but were not carrying anything valuable. So we went back to the place with the carving and looked around for more clues. We searched all the way to the border to the north and the ravine to the east. We couldn't find anything else out of the ordinary and returned to camp again."

"Kiba roused me when his watch was over with no incidents to report. Approximately one hour later, three of the traps on the east side of our encampment were triggered. My kikai informed me that there were at least three chakra sources approaching at high speed. I was unable to determine exactly how many were in the group, several times my allies were unable to detect any chakra, which would then reappear in new locations. I immediately woke my comrades and we readied ourselves for battle. Two minutes later, a small child ran into the clearing, he appeared to be scared and wounded. Upon noticing us, the child stopped and began to scream. At this point, Hinata-san approached the child and was able to calm him down. When asked why he was injured, the child began speaking swiftly and crying, we were only able to understand that he had been playing in the forest near his parents farm when a large beast began to chase him. During the chase, he became lost and did not know how to return home. Kiba informed Hinata-san and I that he would scout out in the direction the child came from, to try and find tracks for this beast. Hinata-san took the child to her tent and began tending his wounds. I patrolled the encampment and reset the three traps that the child apparently set off. I apologize and wish there to be a reprimand added to my file for my negligence in dismissing the inconsistent chakra sources that were originally reported."

Sitting back in the plush chair, Tsunade took a long sip of the sake Shizune had delivered. So far the mission was mundane, although the unknown symbols were something unexpected, something to send over to intel and see if they can find anything. Looking at the two boys, she could see that they were still upset about what happened and needlessly blaming themselves for a situation they could not control. "No Shino-kun, I don't think that you will be getting a reprimand. I believe that you have both been punished enough for such a slight lapse in judgment. Let us jump ahead a bit. Kiba, I understand that you followed the child's path for several miles and found no indication of any animal following him, correct?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama. Akamaru ran ahead and sensed nothing until the trail disappeared coming from a nearby river. We guessed the kid swam across. Since I didn't want to leave the camp for too long, we headed back without picking up the trail on the other side. Looking back, me and Akamaru shoulda taken a quick look just to see if whatever the animal was had decided not to cross. Anyways, when we came back, Shino was asleep and Hinata was on watch with the kids head in her lap stroking his hair. Akamaru went over to them to keep company, I went back to my tent to sleep. I next woke up when Akamaru was thrown into the side of my tent causing it to collapse on me. By the time I was able to cut my way free, Hinata was knocked out, Shino had a taken some hits and was already spitting blood. Me and Akamaru went after one of the guys fighting Shino and the bastard that was standing over Hinata-chan. I didn't notice at the time, but thinking back on it, that bastard was wearing the same outfit as the kid from before. Anyways, we were able to back them out of the clearing, but once we got into the trees they kept trying to split up. I was facing the one who used to be the kid when I was hit with something from behind dislocating my shoulder. I've had it happen before and was able to pop it back into place, but something was wrong with it and it wouldn't stay in. I got a scratch from one of his shuriken and then I couldn't focus anymore. He was able to pin me down and for some strange reason cut off my finger, but didn't try to kill me. Akamaru had apparently taken the other guy out by triggering one of the traps from earlier, but was hit with a kunai before he could get clear. I guess they had poison on the blades because both of us were barely able to move. I crawled over to Akamaru when Shino's kikai arrived and started swarming all over us. Thats the last thing I remember before waking up in the hospital."

"As Kiba reported, the child which had arrived earlier was indeed an adult ninja under some type of henge. I am unable to say whether Hinata utilized her Byakugan while giving the child treatment. If so, I find it highly irregular that she would not be able to detect that he was in disguise. To my knowledge, only Naruto-san is able to adequately disguise his henged clones from Hinata-san. She is able to determine they are clones, but is unable to detect that they have been henged from their original form. When the child dispelled his henge, he was able to render Hinata-san unconscious before any of us were aware. I was awoken by my kikai and able to exit the tent, only to be assaulted by two new ninja. They did not use ninjutsu, and I was unable to detect chakra. The taller opponent was skilled in the use of a staff and able to give me several injuries. After Kiba drew away the second enemy, my opponent channeled a large amount to chakra into his staff. I am unsure of the exact nature of the changes he imparted on the weapon, but it seemed to have increased momentum and became impossible to block. Because of the lack of chakra in his fighting, I was unable to weaken him using my allies. After less than three minutes, I had been disarmed and was struck in the head. Unable to gain my bearings, my opponent was able to break my leg and hip, then began to slam the end of his staff into my abdomen. His comrades gave out a call that they had the target and they turned and fled. I sent out my kikai to locate Kiba, and was informed that both had been poisoned with something that was drawing on their chakra. I had them consume as much of their chakra as possible without putting them in danger. Just before passing out, I sent several kikai in the direction of the mining camp and two towards the nearest outpost. I too only awoke after arriving in the hospital."

"Thank you for your report. I will see that you are kept informed of any new developments. Until then, please take care of yourselves and concentrate on recovering. When Kurenai returns from her mission, I will send her... Well, never mind then." With that, the Kurenai burst through the door. Obviously frantic with worry, she had either abandoned her mission, or rushed back as fast as possible without rest.

"Hokage-sama, please, have you found her? Is she OK? She can't be be missing. Oh kami, Hinata-chan. NO!" Kurenai couldn't hold back anymore and burst into tears.

Shizune entered the room, apologizing for the jounin's enterance, and gathered the woman up off the floor, guiding her over to one of the couches.

"I'm sorry Kurenai, but we haven't found her yet. I send two squad of ANBU to help search the area. Hopefully the chunin who remained when Kiba and Shino were discovered will have discovered the trail and left markers for them to follow. I hope to receive an update this evening, and can only pray that it has good news. Now, I'm sure that you could use some time to rest, so please go with your team and rest. I will send for you if anything happens." At Tsunade's obvious dismissal, Shizune helped Kurenai from the room, followed by Shino and Kiba.

Halting at the doorway, Shino looked back to the Hokage and asked, "May I ask who it was that remained behind?"

With a smirk, Tsunade gave a quite cryptic reply. "Oh, it was the same person that carried you back."

"Then I believe Hinata-chan will be adequitely looked after. Let us catch up to sensei, Kiba." Though he was still confused, Kiba just shrugged and continued pushing Shino out the door.

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A/N: I hope you guys are enjoying this. It's actually been kinda fun to write (i.e. it comes out as I want, not alot of going back and redoing half of it three times)


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Hey, I actually did a new chapter! Unfortunately it doesn't want to follow my initial notes. Oh well, we'll see where this one goes. Hopefully the next few chapters are a pain in the ass to write, cause I really want to get to the end of this one.

Hope you guys enjoy.

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Everything hurt.  
Especially her head and chest.  
It was like she was hit with a tree branch and kicked by a horse.  
Opening her eyes didn't help much. Everything was fuzzy, and it just made her headache worse.  
Taking a deep breath, she tried to sit up, but could only manage to roll over onto her side.  
As she rested, her vision began to clear up little by little. The headache wouldn't go away, but it was becoming more manageable.  
Apparently she was in some one's camp. She could only pray that it wasn't the men who attacked.  
Rolling over more, she was able to lever herself onto her hands and knees. And what she discovered nearly caused her to drop flat on her face.  
This wasn't what she normally wore. For the past two years, she had worn the same outfit when on a mission. Her sensei had given her the jacket, and she had it modified by the clan weapon smith. The pants and shirt she wore beneath it were the same as her mother in the only picture she had left. It made her sad that they were gone, but that wasn't the most shocking part.  
It was the color of the clothes she was wearing right now. And for her to be wearing them, it meant that he wasn't. It also meant that he put them on her, after he took off her old clothes. And only now did she realize that meant he saw her almost naked. But worst of all, she remembered that she had put on her favorite pair of panties, the ones with little bowls of ramen on them.  
And then, Hinata passed out again.

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Naruto came back to the little camp he set up shortly after Hinata's little episode. Dropping an armful of firewood, he noticed that his friend had apparently rolled over in her sleep. Gently he moved her back onto the makeshift bed, and checked to make sure she was OK. Well, considering that Naruto never pair attention during the health education classes, all he could really check was her pulse, breathing, and temperature. Satisfied that she had all three, he put two more logs on the fire and went back out into the woods.

Hinata woke up again, and was able to sit up this time. She was still embarrassed that she was wearing Naruto's jumpsuit, but refrained from passing out again. Taking a few minutes to look around the camp, she was surprised by the sofistication. It made her feel guilty when she realized that she had assumed Naruto wouldn't be able to learn how to make a good champ. Most shocking was the bed she was lying on. Though only made out of what looked like pine boughs and moss, it was very comfortable. The fact the is looked large enough for two people and looked like the other side had been slept in as well, caused her to flush some. There was a good sized fire pit not far from where she lay, with a large pile of firewood to the side. Scattered around the edges of the pit were some fish scales and bones, and the twigs and shells from fruit and nuts, she wasn't aware that some of them even grew in this area.

Hearing the snap of a twig behind her, Hinata turned around and reached for a weapon.

Stepping out of the woods with a couple of fish on a string, Naruto stopped and tilted his head. "Oh, you're awake. What are you doing?"

Realizing that she had no weapon pouch on her leg, Hinata ducked her head and tried to come up with a response. "I, you, sound, um, they, ah, attack, um, Sorry!"

"Eh? What are you sorry for? Never mind that, are you OK? I was starting to get worried you wouldn't wake up." All the while, Naruto continued approaching, only stopping by the fire to hang the fish from a low branch before returning to the bed he made and sitting next to Hinata.

"I'm fine, Naruto-kun. What happened? Where are we? How long was I asleep?" Though she had flushed when he sat next to her, as she asked more questions her body leaned closer to Naruto until their faces were inches apart.

Naruto had always though Hinata was pretty, even though the whole fainting thing was kinda weird, but something made his pause for a minute. There was something in her face, or her eyes, or something, that caused him to loose his train of thought. All he could do was look at her, into her eyes, trying to see what it was that split-second that grabbed his attention. "Naruto-kun? Are you alright?"

Embarrassed that he did hear what she said, he rubbed the back of he head and gave her a big grin. "Oh, yeah, sorry. What were you saying? I spaced out for a minute there."

Feeling a blush on her cheeks from his smile, she looked off to the side and repeared her questions. "What happened to me Naruto-kun? I remember being knocked out by the boy we brought to camp, but that's it. And, um, why am I wearing your clothes?" With that question, she turned a bright red and tried to hide behind her hair.

Naruto was not immune, and he too blushed at the memories and looked up at the sky. As he tried to find a good place to start the story, part of his mind noticed that the sun had set and the stars were beginning to appear, which seemed to remind his stomach that it was time for dinner. The growl of his stomach, caused him to flush a bit more, but it also made Hinata giggle and peek back at him. "Well, give me a minute to start on dinner, then I can tell you what happened. OK?"

Hinata nodded in agreement, and watched as he worked on cooking the fish. She let his words flow over her, listening to the story, but paying more attention to boy in front of her. No, that's wrong. She knew that he was being modest in his retelling of the chase and the battles, but the fact that he was willing to push himself so hard, just to save her, he wasn't a boy. He was a man now. A very handsome man, with broad shoulders, wild yellow hair, and deep blue eyes, that are staring right at her!

"Hello? Earth to Hinata-chan. Are you awake?" He waved his hand in front of her face causing her to jump slightly. Watching as she blinked several times, then appeared to focus on him again, he asked, "How do you like your fish done? I prefer it cooked less, but Ero-sannin usually burns his to a crisp. I think he's just a bad cook though."

"Ano, however you like it, Naruto-kun."

"Alright, three Naruto specials coming right up! So, where was I? Oh yeah. I had just hit that bastard with a rasengen but he dragged you over the edge of the cliff, so I jumped after you and summoned a pair of kage bunshin to help me speed up. I wasn't able to catch you before you hit the water though. You didn't seem to be surfacing, so I had to summon a could of toads to help me find you. It took a minute, but Gamatatsu spotted you with your hood caught on a rock along the bottom. He was able to pull it free, but that just let you get carried downstream. We lost track of you again once you reached the rapids. Luckily, you popped up near a large rock close to the bank. I made two clones to pull you out, but your leg was caught between the rocks. They didn't want to hurt you, but pulling you free tore off the one pants leg and gave you a few scratches. It took me a minute to catch up, and when I did they had you laying out on the shore. You weren't breathing, and I couldn't feel a pulse, so I tried that CRP thing they taught us in the academy. It wasn't working and I was scared you were going to die, so I did the only thing I could think of. I remembered listening to Ero-sannin trying to teach me something about medical jutsu, but most of it was so confusing. One of the few things I understood was that you could restart someone heart with an electric shock. I couldn't remember anything else from his lecture, but I was afraid. I figured your jacket had a mesh layer in it, so I knew I had to remove it. The zipper had gotten jammed, so I used a wind jutsu to slice it open. I, um, kinda over did it, and it's mostly shredded now. Once I had your jacket off, I realized that I couldn't remember if clothing was a problem. I knew you were going to die soon, so I, err, tore off your shirt." Naruto was now blushing almost as much as Hinata, and seemed to be squirming uncomfortably. "I pulled up the chakra in my hands, and, um, placed them on your, uh, and zapped you. Nothing happened, so I did it again. Still nothing, so I pulled up even more, and zapped you one more time. You were just laying there. You were dead. I couldn't save you. I couldn't protect one of my precious people."

He was crying now, his whole body trembling. Hinata was pale as a ghost. She didn't realize that she had died. But she was alive now, something brought her back. Slowly she reached out to touch his shoulder. "Naruto-kun, it's alright. I'm here, I'm alive. You did save me. I know that you'll always protect me." With her words, Naruto broke down. He nearly launched himself into her arms, managing to knock them over onto her back. As he cried, Hinata whispered to him, and stoked his hair. He needed her to be strong for him, and she vowed that she would be. "Naruto-kun? What happened next? How did you bring me back? Please tell me?"

He stiffened in her arms, and tried to pull away. This only made Hinata more concerned, so she held on tighter and continued to stroke his hair. After a few minutes, Naruto relaxed again, resting his head on her shoulder. "There is something you need to know before I can explain that. I'm afraid that you will hate me once you know my secret."

"Nothing could ever make me hate you Naruto-kun. You couldn't never do something that evil to make me hate you." She relaxed her grip to be able to look at his face.

"But I am evil. The embodiment of pure evil. I am the container of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. The demon that nearly destroyed Konoha 16 years ago. With that power, I brought you back from the dead." With that, he was easily able to pull away and retreat to the fire. Noticing the fish were burnt, he tossed them into the fire and watched them be consumed in flame. He was a bit surprised that Hinata hadn't started screaming at him yet, much less attack him with some sort of weapon.

So the slap that came was a bit of a shock. Turning his head back, he was confused by the tears that were streaming down her face. Where was the anger, the hatred, the terror and fear? Why was she sad? Why did she look like she pitied him?

"BAKA! Baka, Baka, Baka!" Each cry was emphasized with another slap, but each was weaker than the one before. "You're wrong! You aren't a demon. You aren't evil. Even if you hold the Kyuubi, it is not you. You are a good man Naruto-kun. I've watched you as long as I can remember. You've never been a bad person. I know that most people aren't nice to you, but it was never your fault. I never knew why they seemed to hate you, but if it was because of this, then they are the demons, not you." She tried to blink away her tears, but they wouldn't stop, just like her words. Something inside was driving her to say things she never dreamed of having the courage to say.

"You used to watch me? Why? I wasn't important." He looked up at her in confusion. It made no sense to him. Hinata was part of a clan. She was pretty, and smart, and respected. Why would she bother to watch him for so long?

"Because you were so strong. Everyone tried to knock you down, but you kept getting back up. I envied you that strength. I wished that I could be as strong as you someday, because then you would look at me. I wanted to be the person who made you smile. I wanted to be the reason you were always so happy. I wanted you to love me as much as I love you!"

Shocked, Naruto could only stare at her with wide eyes. 'She wanted to make me happy?' 'She wanted me to love her?' 'She loves me?!?' Before she could finish turning away, Naruto grabbed her hand, pulling her back to face him. "You, you love me? No one's ever said that before. Are you sure?"

"Yes, Naruto! I've loved you for years, ever since the academy. But I was afraid you wouldn't feel the same, so I never said anything. I wasn't able to talk to you because it scared me."

"What scared you? I thought you didn't know about the Kyuubi."

"No, I didn't. I was scared of how you made me feel. I was happy and afraid at the same time. I wanted to be with you, but didn't want to lose my dreams. I thought you loved Sakura, and it was crushing my heart."

"I'm sorry Hinata. I never knew. I never wanted to cause anyone pain, especially not my friends. I wish you had told me, we might have been much closer." As they spoke, Naruto slowly approached her, and gently held her in his arms. "I thought I was in love with Sakura, but I guess I never knew what love was." Looking down, he tilted Hinata's face towards his. "Would you be willing to teach me, Hinata-chan?"

Staring up into his eyes, Hinata found it hard to breathe, much less speak. With the faintest of whispers she responded, "Hai."

As her eyes closed, Naruto smiled and gave his new love a soft kiss.


	4. Chapter 4

Ravine - Ch.4

OMG! I actually posted something again. Sorry about the eternal delay, I just lost any drive to write. I tried to do few scene occasionally, but they were utter crap. Not like these are that great, but I'm hoping to comes back to me soon.

Still looking for someone to beta/muse.

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Jiraya walked into the campsite they had been using for the past few weeks and scowled. Of course, he actually returned when he originally said, and the little brat was nowhere to be found. The fire was stone cold, a couple of fish were scattered about and half eaten, something seemed to be sleeping in Naruto's tent, and one of the scrolls that he had assigned Naruto to read was laying open. Apparently he left in a hurry, and since there was no blood or craters and broken trees, Jiraya decided that he hadn't be abducted and decided to wait for his return.

He hated it when Naruto made him wait. Of course it was perfectly legitimate for him to dissappear for a few days while Naruto was training. He had informants to meet and information to gather. But waiting around for Naruto was inescusable! Well may not, it did give him time to work on his next book in peace and quiet. Unfortunately for all his numerous fans, something always interrupted him when he was starting to write the good parts (which was most of the book).

Putting away his scroll, the Toad Sage looked up at the trees on the right. "You'd better come out and report, or I'll have to get up and come find you."

Arriving in a swirl of leaves, three ANBU knelt before Jiraya, the leader addressing the Sannin. "Jiraya-sama, we are on an urgent mission for Hokage-sama and request your assistance. Approximately 17 hours ago, the members of Team 8 were asaulted by an unknown force nearby, and Hyuuga-san was kidnapped. We believe that your apprentice encountered the suspects as they fled and engaged in pursuit. There are a few items that we need your expertise on. Please allow us to lead you."

"Hmm, Naruto is off to rescue the princess? Well let's hope he gets a good reward." Standing up and following the ANBU into the forest, he giggled to himself about all the 'rewards' that his protégé was going to get.

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Pushing his teammate back to the hospital, Kiba thought back on the last thing that the Hokage said.

"What was that about who carried us back? We made it back in less than 4 hours, it had to have been an ANBU patrol."

"It was not ANBU Kiba. Remember she said that the same person who stayed behind, also carried us back in a quarter the time it took us to get there," Shino replied while reaching up to let one of his kikai land on his finger.

"His stamina is ever more insane than before. Che, how troublesome."

Surprised by the voice from behind, Kiba spun around quickly, almost knocking the wheelchair over and dumping Shino onto the street.

"Damnit, Shikamaru. Don't sneak up on me!"

"We were under the impression that the Inuzuka always knew what was going on around them. Apparently it was just feeble boasting of a clan that wished to increase its status."

Giving Neji a nod of thanks for catching his tipping transport, Shino spoke in the defense of his teammate. "Kiba does have exceptional situational awareness when we are on a mission, but one can not fault him at the moment while recovering from injuries and an enhanced chakra poison. If your comment was meant to disparage his conduct during the mission, then may I recommend you have words with your cousin when she returns."

"Appologies Kiba. My comment was unwarranted, though I do enjoy watching Nara get the drop on you."

"Keh, if the doctors hadn't said not to use charka, I'd kick you ass from here to the hospital." Looking back at the greater annoyance, Kiba asked with a growl, "What the hell are you and Shino both talking about?"

Sighing at just how slow his friend was, Shikamaru tucked his hand behind his head and started heading back down the street. "Who is the only person we know below Jounin that could concievably create atleast two shadow clones? And who do we know other than Lee, that could get back to Konoha from the border in less than 8 hours, much less 4?"

'Wait, the mission was near the border?' Neji froze in mid-step. 'This was beyond just Hinata-sama going missing. Which border where they near? I doubt Sand would do anything, and Grass is too far for even Lee to reach in less than a day. That only leaves Cloud. Kami-sama, please let her be safe.' "Did the Hokage mention which direction her captors fled?"

"Do not worry, he will not let Hinata-san be harmed, in any way." Feeling the painkillers starting to wear off, Shino gave the wheel an extra push to get Kiba to speed up.

"The Hyuuga Clan shall have a large debt to honor. I shall see that Uzumaki is rewarded adequately." Giving a nod to his companions, Neji turned off in the direction of the clan with a look of determination on his face.

"Eh? Naruto? That's who's going to save Hinata-chan? Kami! The dead last couldn't rescue himself out of an unlocked room!"

About to turn the next corner, Shika heard Kiba's comment. "Troublesome." And with that, he was off to find himself some shade and a couple of clouds.

* * *

Hopefully its not another forever before the next chapter. Worst case scenario, I'll try to push out more smaller chapters.


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